I assume when reading my title at least some of in your minds, started singing Ye by Burna Boy- well that’s not what I am going to be talking about today. Today, I will be talking about being average. I believe that “I can’t come and kill myself” is a saying that has become emblematic of many people’s lives. The “I can’t come and kill myself” ideology has encouraged, or even enabled, people to live average lives. For example, your school work is getting hard, so what do you do? You stop. Why is that? Because “[You] can’t come and kill [yourself]”- you have decided that the work you have done is enough and doing more would simply be ‘killing yourself’.
What does it mean to be average? In my opinion, being average is doing what ‘everyone else’ is doing, doing what is convenient and striving to achieve ‘enough’. Today, I received my A level mock results, which were BBC- a great difference to my predicted grades of A*AA- of course I wasn’t surprised, during the exam period I had Cambridge and York interviews and other endeavours that I just was not going to prioritise these mocks. However, it would be both ignorant and average for my reasons to stop at that. My approach to my mocks were average and therefore my results were average. I did intense revision towards the end and had not fully understand God’s promises for me and the victory-order of living He has given me. What makes me laugh is that I am one of those people who say “I work best under pressure” and it’s funny because it’s a lie- it is a lie I made myself believe. It is *drum roll, please*...average. Going back to my definition of what average is, I chose a ‘last-minute cram’ style of revision- something that everyone else does, is convenient and is enough. Though my revision may have been somewhat fruitful, it was my choice to be average that made the difference between my results being enough and not great.
I think in life we are guilty of using other people’s life as a sort of yardstick of success for ours: for example, you got results for a test back and you quickly ask your friends what they got. Why? Because knowing they got the same marks or lower than you is consoling. (I, for one, am very guilty of this. MEGA LOL.) What we forget is that at the end of the day, we must take account for ourselves- the results of your friends will have no affect on you, in the example of A levels, you are taking it NOT YOUR FRIENDS. I hear a lot of people say “for my set in Maths a D is good” or “no one does well in Science (so it’s fine)”. I don’t really understand why so much negativity presides over those subjects, but considering people excel in it, that shows these statements to just not be right. We are no different to the people who doget A*’s in the subjects, we are equally as brilliant and talented as they are! What sets them apart? Their work-ethic, their discipline, their goals are, plainly speaking, not average.
My mentor at church said that an average person is someone who, for example, picks up clothes in a shop and puts it back in the wrong place, hands in an assignment at the last minute or gets to school for 9.00 when it starts at 9.00 (me, MEGA LOL). Basically, an average person is someone who does what is required or what will get them by, but humans are so beautiful and intellectual, with possession of knowledge that knows no bounds, that we cannot afford to be average. Look at the world today and all the inventions that exist, do you think they were made by average people?
Finally, I believe that a lot of people blame other factors to justify living average lives. It saddens me when I see people who have dyslexia doubt their abilities and declare they are not good enough, because that is simply not true. Albert Einstein had learning disabilities and developed the theory of relativity and his work is still being used in science to this day. The world will tell you lies about what you can achieve so it is down to you to rise above that. It may mean that you may have to work a little harder but you will succeed. So today I engender all of you to be self-aware; reflect on your life and think to yourself, “am I average?”. If the answer is yes, make that decision to change today and not along the line when it is too late.
- Mo stack- “I’m working on it”.
- A.W. Tozier- “Refuse to be average. Let your heart soar as high as it will.”
- Jeremiah 29:11- “For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
- Philippians 4:13- “I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”
- 2 Corinthians 5:17- “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”
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